Submission on the implementation plan for New Zealand's Biodiversity Strategy
The Commissioner has made a submission to the Department of Conservation on its draft implementation plan for New Zealand’s Biodiversity Strategy.
While he supports a number of the proposed actions, particularly around prioritisation, monitoring and reporting, he warns that these actions alone will not be enough to meet New Zealand’s biodiversity targets. To be successful, the key underlying drivers of the biodiversity crisis – land use change and introduced pests – must be addressed. Yet, none of the 13 actions in the plan focus on these issues.
The Commissioner further states: “None of the actions proposed in the discussion document relate to what – in my view – are the two most important objectives in the Aotearoa New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy: that ecosystems and species are protected, restored, resilient and connected from mountain tops to ocean depths, and that natural resources are managed sustainably. Taken at face value, this seems to suggest that DOC believes that no additional work is required to achieve these goals.”
The Commissioner also warns that considerable investment will be needed to achieve the biodiversity targets – for weed and pest control, for breeding programmes, and to fund the sorts of financial incentives that will be necessary to stop habitat loss on private land. With little additional funding for DOC in Budget 2025, the Commissioner questions where this money will come from. He notes that suggestions that private investment could fill the gap are unrealistic, but that a polluter pays approach is worth pursuing.